Organized Innovation

"Organized" and "innovation" are words rarely heard together. But an organized approach to innovation is precisely what America needs today. This book presents a blueprint for coordinating technology breakthroughs to advance America's global competitiveness and prosperity.

That prosperity is at risk. As other nations bolster technology innovation efforts, America's research, development, and commercialization enterprise is falling behind. An "innovation gap" has emerged in recent decades, where US universities focus on basic research and industry concentrates on incremental product development. The country has failed to address the innovation gap because of three myths--innovation is about lone geniuses, the free market, and serendipity. These myths blind us from recognizing our dysfunctional system of unorganized innovation.

In Organized Innovation, Currall, Frauenheim, Perry and Hunter provide a framework for optimizing the way America creates, develops, and commercializes technology breakthroughs. A roadmap for universities, business, and government, the book is grounded in the authors' seminal study of the National Science Foundation's Engineering Research Center program, which has returned to the US economy more than ten times the funding invested in it.

For too long, our approach to technology innovation has been unorganized. The authors enable us to turn the page. They show us how to organize innovation for a more prosperous, hopeful future.

Steven C. Currall is Dean and Professor of Management in the Graduate School of Management at the University of California, Davis. He applies organizational psychology to study topics such as innovation, emerging technologies, negotiation, and corporate governance. In addition to leadership positions in schools of management, he has served in engineering schools as Vice Dean, department chair, and endowed chair holder. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Ed Frauenheim is an author, speaker, and associate editorial director of Workforce magazine, where he writes about the intersection of people management, technology and business strategy. He co-authored Good Company: Business Success in the Worthiness Era (2011) and his work has appeared in publications including Wired, The Dallas Morning News, and Salon.
 
Sara Jansen Perry, Assistant Professor of Management in the College of Business at the University of Houston-Downtown, earned her Ph.D. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology at the University of Houston. She teaches management and negotiation courses and conducts research on leadership and stress. She has a background in computer science and information technology sales.

Emily M. Hunter is Assistant Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship in the Hankamer School of Business at Baylor University, having earned her Ph.D. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology at the University of Houston. She teaches negotiation and conducts research on work-family conflict, employee deviance, and servant leadership.